Dixie Bested by Bears
J. C. Tilton
Northridge and Dixie played a rough tough game. This was a makeup game from a previous date that had been snowed out. It may have been the Monday blah's or something in the weather, but it was rough in one sense as both teams had their fair share of fouls and turnovers. Unofficially there were around 46 fouls and over 50 turnovers between the two teams. However it was rough in the sense that the two teams played nose to nose for most the game and it wasn't until the last quarter that one team was able to pull away with a sizable lead. The other three quarters no team lead by more than 3.
Northridge was comfortable to stay in a 2-3 zone for the evening. Dixie opted to go with a man to man half court defense and threw in the press to keep the Polar Bears off balance. They were able to generate some turnovers, but either the shot was missed or Dixie would return the favor and give the ball back. Dixie had a lot of good looks in the first half, but missed a lot of easy shots. Northridge was not oversized, but did have a height advantage and they seemed to do a good job of cleaning up the boards.
In the first quarter, Randi Bargo was assigned the task of guarding Kacy Allen, Northridge's main scoring threat. But about 5 minutes into the game she drew her second foul and had to spend a good deal of the first half on the bench. That kept one of Dixie's taller players on the bench. Northridge did manage to end the first quarter with a 12-9 lead. At the end of the 2nd quarter the action was fast and furious. Bargo was back on the court - but picked up her third foul as did Northridge's Kacy Allen. Both players were relegated to the bench. Senior Abby Witt stepped it up in the last minute and a half. She made a steal and fed the ball to Alex Cummins who connected and pulled Dixie within 2 points of Northridge. Next Cummins was fouled and she hit a shot to put Dixie one point away from a tie. With seconds left in the half, Witt picked up a deflected pass and sank a shot to gave Dixie a 21-20 lead as time ran out.
In the third quarter, Megan Millikin was assigned Kacy Allen on defense. But she picked up fouls 3 and 4 in the effort. However Northridge's Allen also picked up foul number 4 and was sent to the bench, later teammate Monica Bryant picked up her 4th foul as well. Both teams struggled to score although Northridge had caught up and passed Dixie. There was a 3-4 minute period where no points were scored, but then Northridge found the mark and extended their lead. Dixie charged at the end, but Northridge had a 30-28 lead going into the final quarter.
At the beginning of the quarter it looked like Dixie was getting ready to make their run. Alex Cummins hit a trey to give Dixie the lead. After Northridge came back with a basket, Randi Bargo hit a shot in the paint to put Dixie on top again. Then the Dixie defense seemed to go to sleep - and well the offense took a nap as well. Northridge went on a 9-0 run. The Dixie press broke down several times and gave away easy buckets. Coach May took a time out, but the momentum had taken a big swing to the Polar Bears. Kacy Allen had 11 of her 28 points in this quarter. The girls tried to make a comeback, but Northridge kept the game out of reach. At the end the score was 48-40 in favor of Northridge.
Coach May was asked to comment, “We just need to play a whole game. We can't get down in the first couple of quarters and then try to work our way back. We need to play better defense. We had some girls get into foul trouble.” When asked about the Northridge defense she responded, “We got in more shots, just couldn't hit them.” She did have an accolade for one of the post players, “Bargo is starting to get into the groove”; referring to Bargo's 12 points.
Scoring: Kelhoffer 3, Witt 5, Bargo 12, Nill 1, S. Kirby 1, Millikin 4, Cummins 15.
The JV game was won by Dixie. But they had to stave off a vigorous Polar Bear press in the last quarter to hold onto their lead. They had a double figure lead at one point, but Northridge whittled down the lead but when time ran out it was a 36-32 Greyhound victory. Scoring: Barnes 3, Radar 6, Ruppert 7, Leis 10, Bertke 8.
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